ANSA news

Croatia-Slovenia: maritime border dispute continues

Wed, 06/09/2017 - 14:49

(ANSA) - ZAGREB - In an interview released to local media this
morning, Croatia's Foreign Minister Marija Pejcinovic Buric
harshly criticised her Slovenian counterpart Karl Erjavec,
saying that his behavior in relation to the dispute over the
maritime border in northern Adriatic Sea, was ''aggressive and
naughty''.
''I think it's time to say openly that Erjavec is not in favour
of dialogue'', Buric added, explaining that the accusations
against Croatia expressed by Slovenian Foreign Minister in the
past weeks ''have gone too far''.
Erjavec has said repeatedly that Zagreb, by refusing to accept
the arbitration judgement on the border in the Piran Bay, Gulf
of Trieste, issued last June, does not respect international
law. Therefore, he announced that Slovenia could appeal to
international tribunals and insinuated that his country could in
the future put a veto on Croatia's accession to the Schengen
area.
According to Zagreb, the whole arbitration process was
irremediably compromised by Ljubljana's illegitimate pressures
on the judges and therefore considers it to be non-binding.
''Despite all the problems that remani to be solved, Zagreb is
open to discussions on all issues'', Buric said. ''Anyway, even
Slovenia should be interested in Croatia's accession to Schengen
- he added - and this is the issue of EU external borders, and
not the internal ones between individual member states.

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